Snowshoe harness



1952 H. HOWE 3,060,600

SNOWSHOE HARNESS Filed May 12, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet l ll6b r a a I8 2oINVENTOR 5 HAROLD HOWE l4 h L BY gjjt ni i ag f 4/ %2 ATTORNEY 1952 H.HOWE 3,060,600

SNOWSHOE HARNESS Filed May 12, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR HAR OLDHOWE 1% g BY Oct. 30, 1962 H. HowE 3,060,600

SNOWSHOE HARNESS Filed May 12, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR HAROLDHOWE ATTORNEY Oct. 30, 1962 I HOWE 3,060,600

SNOW-SHOE HARNESS Filed May 12, 1961 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVEN TOR. Q4/2040/awz United tates 3,060,600 SN OWSHOE HARNESS Harold Howe, Rowayton,Conn, assignor to Howe Folding Furniture, Inc., New York, N.Y., acorporation of New York Filed May 12, 1961, Ser. No. 126,742 7 Claims.(Cl. 364.5)

This invention relates to a snow shoe harness. This application is acontinuation-in-part of co-pending application of Serial No. 18,55 8,filed March 30, 1960, now Patent 3,000,117, granted September 19, 1961.

Snow shoes comprise a frame enclosing an area which is crisscrossed witha lacing of rawhide. Harnesses are required to secure the users boots tothe snow shoes so that he will have control of them at all times both ona level surface and while travelling over sloping terram.

In walking on snow shoes the user needs to lift the front end of a snowshoe at the start of a step and move the snow shoe forward. At the endof a step the front end of the snow shoe is lowered again and the usersfoot rotates forwardly on the ball of the foot causing the heel of theusers boot to be lifted from the snow shoe surface, i.e., upwardly fromthe lacing, as the user advances the other snow shoe. As the users bootis rotated forwardly the toe of the boot is somewhat tilted forwardlyinto an opening provided in the lacing.

Since snow shoes are used on sloping terrain as well as on the level astatisfactory harness must provide complete and continuous control of asnow shoe at all times, both for travel on the level and on inclinesincluding side slopes. When used on an incline sloping laterally of asnow shoe the strain on a harness is severe. The heel of the users boottends to swing in the direction of the slope and if this occurs thecontrol of the snow shoe decreases.

Snow shoe harnesses of the prior art have been unsatisfactory in failingto provide rigid and continuous control. The prior art includesharnesses comprising only flexible straps, which are unsatisfactory forthe reasons given above, and harnesses which employ a rigid U-strapintended to fit snugly along the sides of the users boot in addition toextending around the heel. Such U-members are very inadequate for thetorsional strain to which they are subjected when the user is crossingan incline sloping transversely of the direction of travel, and thepressure of the boot against one side of the U-member is very tiring aswell as causing wear on the side of the boot.

In applicants Patent No. 2,821,031, means were provided for controllinga snow shoe primarily from the heel of the users boot. This wasaccomplished by flexible strap means which transmitted pressure againstthe heel of a boot from points on a snow shoe well in advance of theheel of the boot and spaced laterally from the sides of the boot, thepressure this applied on the heel serving to hold the boot against toeabutment means which determined the position of the boot longitudinallyon the snow shoe. This structure gave improved control against forcestending to swing the users heel laterally with respect to thelongitudinal mid-line of the snow shoe, and it met with commercialsuccess.

The harness which is the subject of this application is an improvementupon the harness disclosed in applicauts Patent No. 2,821,031. Theharness disclosed in that patent is not altogether satisfactory sincethe flexi- 3,060,600 Patented Oct. 30, 1962 ble strap means stretches,or shrinks when wet, to a degree which still permits an undesirableamount of movement of the heel of the users boot transversely of a snowshoe, and when such movement occurs the flexible strap on the side ofthe boot which is in the direction of the swinging movement of the bootbecomes slack and ceases to support the boot in a position tosatisfactorily control the snow shoe.

An object of this invention is to provide an improved snow shoe harnesssuch that the snow shoe will be continuously under control at all timesincluding forward, lateral, tilting and swinging movements of the snowshoe.

Another object of the invention is to provide control of a snow shoefrom the heel of a users boot by holding the boot back against meansproviding an abutment for the heel of a boot.

The invention will best be understood if the following description isread in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view;

FIG. 2 is a bottom plan view;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation;

FIG. 4 is an end view taken on the lines 4-4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the invention, partlybroken away;

FIG. 6 is a detail view partly in section taken on the line 66 of FIG.5;

FIG. 7 is a side elevation of a modified pivot bracket;

FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the bracket shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a vertical cross-section taken on the line 9-9 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a plan view partly broken away of a strap and keeper forholding the toe of a boot down on a snow shoe;

FIG. 11 is a transverse sectional view looking toward the toe of a usersboot which is held down on the snow shoe by the means illustrated inFIG. 10, and showing a preferred way of attaching the said means to asnow shoe;

FIG. 12 is a side view of the structure shown in FIG. '11;

FIG. 13 is a plan view of a preferred interconnection between one end ofa control member and a bracket adapted to be mounted on a snow shoeframe;

FIG. 14 is a perspective view similar to FIG. Sshowing a modifiedembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 15 is a top plan view of the structure shown in FIG. 14;

FIG. 15A is a detailed perspective view, and

FIG. 16 is a side elevation, similar to FIG. 3 of the modified structureshown in FIGS. 14-15A.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings theharness comprises the combination of, a rigid heel control member 10,the brackets 12 and 14 to which the forward end of the control member 10are respectively pivotally mounted, a means 16 anchored to the controlmember 10 for extending around the front of a users boot in the regionof the instep and holding the boot in home position against the controlmember 10, a means 18 for limiting downward movement of the heel of theboot relative to the control member 10, and a means 20 for holding thetoe of a boot down on the snow shoe irrespective of the lifting andlowering of the heel of the boot together with the said member 10, whichoccurs each time a step is taken.

This combination has the advantage of providing more complete control ofa snow shoe than has previously been obtained. This control is theresult of pressure exerted against the heel of the users boot andmaintained at all times while the snow shoe is in use, both whilestepping forwardly, backwardly or sideways, and while swinging the snowshoe to change the direction in which they are pointing. Thiscombination also has the advantage that the whole harness may be mountedon a snow shoe at an angle to the longitudinal center line of the snowshoe. Some snow shoers prefer to have their boots angled slightly sothat the toe of the snow shoe is on the opposite side of thelongitudinal center line of the snow shoe from the heel. This can beaccomplished by positioning brackets 12 and 14 on the snow shoe at anangle to the center line of the snow shoe and with one bracket slightlyin advance of the other, or by adjusting the arms of the control memberto make the arm on one side longer than the arm on the other side.

Preferably the control member 10 comprises an intermediate portion 10b,which is substantially U-shaped and adapted to serve as an abutment forthe heel of a boot and desirably providing contact not only on theextreme rear end of the heel but also to some extent along the sides ofthe heel, and the portions or arms 10a and 100 which are angledoutwardly and extend from the portion 10b to the pivot mountingsprovided on the brackets 12 and 14, or, as illustrated herein arms 10aand 100 are extended by members 10d and 10a which extend to the pivotmountings p on the brackets.

The member 16 is desirably a flexible two-part strap comprising theparts 16a and 16b respectively, one end of each of said parts beingsecured as by rivets r to the control member 10, and preferably toopposed portions of the intermediate portion 10b, and buckle means 17carried by one of said parts 16:: or 16b and adapted to engage thecorresponding end of the other of said parts 16b or 16a. Theintermediate portion 10b of rigid member 10 provides an abutment againstwhich the heel of the boot is positioned and the parts 16a and 16b serveto hold the users boot in home position against the intermediate portion1012, thus maintaining pressure against the heel of a users boot at alltimes.

Desirably the end portions or arms of member 10 are each adjustable inlength. As shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 5, the arms of member 10 are eachadjustable in length and comprise portions 10a and 100 respectivelywhich are integral with portion 10b, and portions 10d and 1% whichoverlap and extend beyond portions 10a and 10c respectively and arepivotally connected adjacent their outer ends to the brackets 12 and 14respectively. In the embodiment shown in FIG. the portions d and 10::may be secured to portions 10a and 100 respectively in various positionsof overlap by the thumb screws t.

The member 18 may desirably be a cross member or web of any suitablematerial extending across the generally triangular space defined by thecontrol member. As shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4, member 18 is in the formof a strap the ends of which are brought up on the outside of opposedportions of the intermediate portion 10b of member 10 and anchored tomember 10 by rivets r, which may be the same rivets which secure thestrap parts 16a and 16b respectively. The web or cross strap 18 providesa floor on which the heel of a boot rests and it serves to prevent theheel moving downwardly with respect to control member 10. The innersurface of portion 10b of member 10 preferably has a liner 19, securedto 10b in any suitable way as by rivets and extending upwardly from 10bto provide an extended area of contact with the heel of the boot.

It will be understood that control member 10 swings up and down aroundthe pivots p together with the heel of the users boot which moves up anddown in taking each step. The members 16 and 18 coact in positioning ausers boot relative to control member 10 so that the boot cannot moveforwardly away from abutment with portion 10b of the control member 10or downwardly relative to the control member 10. Thus members 16 and 13coact with member 10 in causing member 10 to swing up and down as theheel of the users boot is raised and lowered, thus maintaining positivecontrol of the snow shoe by means of pressure communicated from the snowshoe to the heel of the users boot at all times.

The means for holding the toe of the boot down on the snow shoe ispreferably a strap which is threaded through the lacing of the snow shoeand twisted around the toe cord 22 so that an intermediate portion ofstrap 20 extends on the under side of the lacing and the free ends arebrought up on opposite sides of the toe portion of the boot and buckledtogether tightly enough to hold the toe portion of the boot down on thesnow shoe lacing. Desirably member 20 is twisted around the toe cord onopposite sides of the toe of the boot and adjusted to permit the frontend of the toe of the boot to extend through it and over the space 24between the toe cord 22 and toe cross-bar 26.

Desirably the brackets 12 and 14 are mounted on opposed portions of thesnow shoe frame to give a firm control base for attaching the controlmember 10 and at the same time causing the forward ends of the divergingarms 10a and to be spaced well apart laterally of the snow shoe, whichreduces strain on a control member and also increases the control of theboot heel by increasing the pressure which is exerted on the extremerear of the heel.

In FIGURES 7, 8 and 9 a modified form of bracket 28 is shown, the endsof each of which rest on the snow shoe frame and the intermediateportion of which is raised from the frame, and which has the pivot pinsp on which the arms of the strap 10 are pivoted. An arm portion 10d isshown in FIGS. 8 and 9 on a pivot pin p and held in position by lockwashers w, w.

In FIG. 13, one end of a control member 10 is shown connected to abracket 12 by a ball and socket connection. As illustrated herein, thiscomprises a ball portion 30 at one end of a stem 32 which is fastened tothe flange of a bracket 12 in any suitable way. Portion 32 may comprisea clamp for engaging the flange of bracket 12, or a bolt threaded toreceive the nut 34 for clamping against the outer face of the flangeafter the inner end of the bolt is peened over. The stem 32 extendsthrough the extremity of the arm of member 10 and the ball portion 30extends partly into the aperture thus provided. A cover member 36 whichprovides a concavity between two fiat ends is secured over the ballportion, as by the rivets r.

Such a connection is preferred since it permits a control member to bemounted on show shoes of different width without affecting the freedomof the control member to pivot around its forward ends. It will beappreciated that when the forward ends of the control member 10 arespread apart different distances to engage brackets mounted on opposedportions of snow shoes of different widths the angles of the forwardextremities of the control member arms will vary somewhat relative topivot pins provided on the brackets. The ball and socket connection isnot affected by changes in the angular position of the arms of thecontrol member. This is of practical importance since snow shoes aremade in different sizes, usually sizes 8" to 14 wide, having differentwidths between opposed portions of the frame in the region of the toecord.

The structure shown in FIGS. 14-16 has the advantages: that it is verystrong where the greatest strength is needed, that is, in resistance tostrain on the arms of the control member exerted transversely, as forexample, in crossing a slope where the weight of the user is exertedagainst the down hill arm of the control member; and the control memberarms and the supporting bracket means are low and thus eliminate anychance of interference when one shoe is passing the other shoe intravel; the cross straps can be adjusted in position longitudinally ofthe control arms if desired; the supporting bracket means ischaracterized by two sets of pivots, one of which extends over thesurface of the snow shoe in a plane substantially parallel with the snowshoe surface, and the other of which extends upwardly, normal to theshort strap 46, is of very real practical importance since together theyprovide the advantages of a universal joint and also make it possiblefor a given control member to be assembled on any of a number of snowshoes of different widths or on which the supporting bracket means arespaced apart different distances. Since the control member is somewhatresilient the angular position of its arms relative to one another canbe changed, but any change makes for somewhat imperfect connection withhorizontally disposed pivot pins, such as the pivot pins p shown in FIG.5. It is to lessen this difiiculty that the outer extremities of thearms as shown in FIG. 5 are bent so that they are disposed more or lessin parallel. But it will be appreciated that while the difficulty isreduced by bending the outer extremities of the control arms as shown inFIG. 5 it is altogether overcome and avoided by the structure shown inFIG. 14. The control member as shown in FIG. 14 is self-accommodating tothe supporting bracket means shown in FIG. 14 through any of a Widerange of distances between the supporting brackets.

The combination of the flexible strap members 54 and 64 together with58, which may be an intermediate portion of 64, and with the keeper 66common to both of said members 54 and 64, is particularly effective inholding the boot back against the intermediate portion of the controlmember and in keeping the instep and heel portion of the boot supportedby the cross member 58 at all times. Flexible strap parts 64a and 64b,and strap 54 coact in accomplishing this, and they are aided and held inposition over the instep of the boot by the keeper 66 which also servesto distribute the pressure of the strap means, 54 and 64a and 6411. Thisarrangement gives a triangular support which is so effective in use thatless dependence than formerly need to be placed on the toe strap whichhas heretofore been adjusted tightly over the boot for added control ofthe snow shoe. With the means disclosed above, and particularly in FIGS.14-16, the snow shoe is controlled primarily from the heel of the bootand while the toe strap still serves to hold the toe portion of the bootdown on the surface of the snow shoe, it may be more loosely engagedwith the toe portion of the boot than in prior art harnesses therebyimproving the circulation in the users foot and reducing materially thetendency of the users toes to become cold.

It will be noted that the snow shoe harness disclosed herein in aplurality of modifications may be readily mounted on old as well as onnew snow shoes; that a control member may be interchanged between snowshoes of different widths and can be adjusted both in length and inwidth for use with different sizes of boots as well as on differentsizes of snow shoes. It will also be noted that the means for holdingthe boot back against the intermediate portion of the control member,and the means for providing the control member with a floor, as well asthe means for holding the boot down on the floor, may be easily andquickly replaced merely by undoing wing nuts, and thus the harnessdisclosed herein may be repaired in an emergency as by using portions ofa leather belt or even pieces of a garment.

There has thus been provided a snow shoe harness in which the abovestated objects are accomplished in a thoroughly practical manner.

What I claim is:

l. A snow shoe harness comprising, a rigid heel control member, havingan intermediate portion disposed in a vertical plane and adapted toserve as an abutment member for the heel of the boot, and a plurality ofrigid arms projecting forwardly and outwardly from the intermediateportion, said control member being twisted at the juncture of theintermediate portion with said arms respectively to dispose said arms ina horizontal plane, substantially at right angles to the plane of theintermediate portion, means for pivotally mounting said control memberon a snow shoe for swinging movement in a vertical plane around theforward ends of its arms, including, a pair of vertical pivots on whichthe forward ends of said arms respectively are mounted, support meansfor said vertical pivots, a pair of brackets and means for mounting themon a snow shoe, horizontally extending pivots supported by said bracketsrespectively, the said support means being pivotally mounted on saidhorizontally extending pivots respectively, means anchored to saidcontrol member for keeping the heel of a boot in abutting relation tothe intermediate portion of said control member and preventing forwardmovement of the boot relative to said member, cross means extendingacross the space defined by the arms of said control member fordetermining the level of the boot relative to said control member, meansfor holding the heel portion of the boot down on the cross means, andmeans for holding down the toe of the boot without interfering with theraising and lowering of the heel of the boot .and the said controlmember.

2. The snow shoe harness claimed in claim 1 in which the cross meansextending across the space between the arms of said control member isadapted to be engaged with at least one of said arms at either of aplurality of points spaced longitudinally of it to compensate fordifferences in the distance between said arms and means are provided fordetachably securing said cross means to said arms at either of saidpoints.

'3. The snow shoe harness claimed in claim 1 in which the cross memberis a portion of the means for holding the heel portion of the boot downon the cross member.

4. A snow shoe harness comprising in combination, a

pair of brackets mounted on a snow shoe in laterally spaced relation,and a control member the ends of which are pivotally connected to saidbrackets respectively, said control member being shaped so that it has acurved intermediate portion, disposed rearwardly of the snow shoe fromits pivoted ends, and two low rigid arms extending from saidintermediate portion forwardly and outwardly to said bracketsrespectively at a level which is approximately the level of the bottomedge of said intermediate portion, said brackets comprising means forengagement with the snow shoe, first pivot means extending inwardlyparallel with, and close to, the surface of the snow shoe, a pair ofshort, rigid straps rotatably mounted on said pivot means respectively,and a second pair of pivots normal to, and extending upwardly from saidshort straps respectively, the forward ends of the arms of the controlmember being pivoted on said second pair of pivots respectively.

5. The snow shoe harness claimed in claim 4 in which the arms of saidrigid control member each comprise a plurality of parts and means areprovided for selectively interconnecting the parts of each arm in aplurality of overlapped positions to control the length of said armsrespectively.

6. The snow shoe harness claimed in claim 4, in which the said controlmember is sufiiciently resilient to permit its arms to be moved somewhattoward and away from one another thereby changing the relative anglebetween said arms and the distance between opposed points on the arms,and including a cross member extending across the space between the armsof said rigid control member to provide a floor for the instep and heelportion of a boot and means for detachably securing the cross member tosaid arms at points selected in accordance with the distance between thesaid arms.

7. The snow shoe harness claimed in claim 4 including a cross memberextending across the space between the arms of said rigid control memberto provide a floor for the instep and heel portion of a boot, meansadjustable 7 8 in length and secured to the curved intermediate portionReferences Cited in the file of this patent of the control member andadapted to be passed around the boot and fastened, to hold the heel ofthe boot in UNITED STATES PATENTS abutting relation to the midpart ofthe intermediate por- 4 0 2 Nadeau May 6 1947 tion, means adjustable inlength and secured to the con- 5 2 738 596 Walsh Man 20 1956 trol memberon either side adjacent the points of juncture between the arms and theintermediate portion to hold 2769250 Rinkinen 1956 the heel and instepportions of the boot down on said cross 2,821,031 Howe Jan. 28, 1958member, and keeper means common to and engageable 2,987,884 Howe June13, 1961 with both said last mentioned means disposed over the 10 instepof the boot.

